Optical microscope combined with the nanopipette-based quartz tuning fork-atomic force microscope for nanolithography

Abstract

We demonstrated the optical microscope (OM) combined with nanopipette-based quartz tuning fork -atomic force microscope (QTF-AFM) for nanolithography. The nanoparticle (Au, 5 nm), nanowire, PDMS solutions are ejected onto the substrate through the nano/microaperture of the pulled pipette, and the nano/microscale objects were in-situ formed on the surface with the proposed patterning system, while the position is defined by monitoring the phenomena on the substrate with a home-made OM. After forming of capillary condensation between apex of the pipette tip and the surface, the electric field is applied to extract out the inside liquid to the substrate and the nano/microscale objects are fabricated. The nanoscale patterning size can be controlled by the aperture diameters of the pulled pipette.